3 Reasons It’s More Than “Just a Cleaning”

Has it already been six months? It seems like you just saw your Gresham family dentist, but Clare or Rachel is already calling you again. Nothing hurts — do you really need to come back for “just a cleaning?”

The truth is, your dental “cleaning” is so much more than just a tidy up. Here are three reasons regular preventive appointments are essential.

1.) Healthy gums = healthy mouth.

When you come in for your visit, your hygienist gently removes the hard deposits that form on your teeth over time. These deposits form on everyone’s teeth and they don’t come loose with regular brushing or flossing. Leaving them there is like leaving a sliver in your finger– over time, it will cause swelling, bleeding and infection. Once gum disease takes hold, it can destroy the bone around your teeth. Even worse…

2.) Gum disease can kill.

Does that sound like an exaggeration? Studies have shown that people with gum disease are at higher risk for heart disease. Gum disease is also linked to:

heart attack

stroke

diabetes

low birth weight & premature birth

3.) Regular dental exams save you time, pain and even money.

You know the old saying, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Regular dental exams can stop a soft spot in your tooth before it turns into a cavity, or stop a cavity before it becomes a root canal. Did you know that most dental cavities have no symptoms until the tooth is seriously damaged? So if you wait till it hurts, you might have waited too long to save your tooth.

We care about your health! Your regular dental hygiene visits go a long way to protecting your mouth, your heart and your pocketbook. And the bonus — we get to catch up with you and your family! So the next time you get a call from us, just remember — it’s more than “just a cleaning!”